“You’re assuming Paul recognized me,” Ellie said. “He didn’t.”

“What if Paul decides to call Anton instead and tell him who you really are?”

“You’ve got people watching Anton. If that happens, we’ll know.”

“My job is to protect the asset. If your cover gets blown or, God forbid, you get killed, I—”

“That’s not going to happen.”

“You don’t know that.”

“You don’t know that, either.”

“But I do know that these people are like us,” Roland said. “They can dismember someone and then go out to dinner, come home, and kiss their kids good night and sleep like a baby. If they’re not outright psychopaths, they’re sociopaths or suffering from some other personality disorder.”

“I’m aware of that.”

Roland’s face twisted with concern. “I can—and will—put more people around you, have them stake out your place and your car, see what turns up. The reality is, I can’t guarantee your safety. You may want to give that some thought.”

“I did. The whole way home with Anton.”

“And?”

“I feel like I’m on the edge of something—a major breakthrough,” Ellie said. “I’m staying.”

“Even knowing the risks?”

“Even knowing the risks.”

Roland sighed. “The pills Anton gave you,” he said. “I’ll take one with me to give to the lab. The other one—I want you to give it to Frank.”

“Frank?”

“Tell him who gave it to you and where you got it. Tell him everything you told me.”

“They’ll kill Anton.”

“Not right away,” Roland said, Ellie surprised how matter-of-fact he sounded, like they were discussing a board game and not a human life. “The smart play will be to use you as a mole, have you stick as close to Anton as possible, monitor everything he says and does, and report back to Frank. Then they’ll make a move to get Paul for reasons I’m sure you’ll soon discover.”

Ellie was surprised at how fiercely she wanted to protect Anton. He was a kidnapper and murderer, and yet she wanted to tell Roland, No, I can’t sell him out, not like that.

“This is a good way for you to get closer to Frank—to get closer to his inner circle,” Roland said. “It shows you’re loyal to him.”

Roland began to explain exactly what Ellie had to do. She barely heard him, a part of her brain still working out her feelings about Anton. If the tables were turned, he’d throw her to the wolves in a heartbeat. So why did it bother her so much? Because she liked him? Because he was good to her? Not to everyone else, mind you, but to her. It made Ellie think of interviews she’d read of people who had known Hitler, the heinous acts he and his men had been committing, these bystanders justifying their lack of action by saying, Well, he was always nice to me. Hitler and his goon squad never did anything to me. But these people had distance; they weren’t directly involved in the atrocities. She was involved—had a front-row seat.